Cheap The Mouse That Roared (DVD) (Peter Sellers, Jean Seberg) (Jack Arnold) Price

Related Products

Customer Reviews of The Mouse That Roared

" But what if we win?...."
A fellow graduate school student and I saw this film in New Haven when it was first released and had no idea what to expect, except that it starred Peter Sellers whose work we both admired very much in earlier films such as The Ladykillers (1955), Tom Thumb (1958), and I'm All Right Jack (1959). So we settled back in our seats and were immediately enchanted by Grand Fenwick and its monarch, Grand Duchess Gloriana (Sellers). The best way to enjoy this film now is to see it as a whimsical fantasy rather than as a serious satire of the Cold War and the widespread concern then about thermonuclear weapons. Its greatest strength remains the same as it was 45 years ago: The talents of Peter Sellers. He plays three quite different characters, the aforementioned Grand Duchess as well as "Field Marshal" Tully Bascombe (who leads a 20-soldier invasion of the United States) and Count Mountjoy, the devious prime minister.

The plot (such as it is) consists of a series of humorous incidents prior to, during, and then following the invasion. As directed by Jack Arnold, the film focuses on the implications of a basic conceit: Declare war on the United States (as did Japan and then Germany), lose the war, and then have your economy restored to greater health than ever before (e.g. Japan and Germany). Count Mountjoy's strategy fails for reasons best revealed in the film. One of the several brilliant elements is Arnold's use of Professor Kokintz (David Kossoff) who has invented the "Q Bomb," a weapon whose nuclear power (he claims) is "approximately" equal to 100 hydrogen bombs. Better yet, it has the size and shape of an American football and thus can easily be tucked under an arm until activated. Presumably the straight-faced silliness throughout this film made a favorable impression on members of the Monty Python Flying Circus.

Regrettably, the DVD version I have offers no special features other than clearer image and sound. Those who enjoy this film are urged to check out Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) in which Alec Guinness plays eight different roles.

Funny story, but bad DVD
The Mouse That Roared is a funny satire that is boosted by the excellent performances of Peter Sellers. Set in the fictional country of Grand Fenwick, the story tells of their plans to invade America, lose the war, and then reap the benefits as the USA tries to rebuild their country just like after WWII with the Marshall Plan. Unfortunately, the whole plan goes awry setting the whole story into motion. This is a funny movie but there is nothing here that is great humor. The idea of it all is pretty good, but the story never really takes off.

Peter Sellers is great as the Duchess of Grand Fenwick, the Prime Minister of Grand Fenwick, and also the Field Marshall of Grand Fenwick. He has most of the good lines in the movie although even he is not at his best. The film also stars Joan Seberg as the daughter of a doctor that the Field Marshall falls in love with. The DVD does offer widescreen presentation and several theatrical trailers but there is a problem here. Maybe its just my own DVD but the sound is off so that when people talk their mouths move a second or two after the actual dialogue has been spoken. This may just be my DVD, but it is distracting nonetheless and very obvious. The Mouse that Roared is still a funny movie with three good performances by Peter Sellers.